SGIMUN 2022

LOK SABHA COMPENDIUM

Committee: Lok Sabha

Agenda: Amending the term secular in the Constitution

LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

Dear Prospective Members,

On behalf of the Executive Board, we extend a warm welcome to all of you and

congratulate you on being a part of the SGIMUN.

The committee being simulated, unlike most other simulations you must have heard of or

been a part of; focuses on political intellect and analytical application of thoughts and

strategic application of thoughts in resolving impending politically sensitive bilateral

issues.

Kindly note that we are not looking for existing solutions, or statements that would be a

copy paste of what the kind of leader you are representing has already stated; instead we

seek an out of the box solution from you, while knowing and understanding your

impending political and ideological limitations.

This Introductory guide would be as abstract as possible, and would just give you a basic

perspective on what you can expect from the committee and areas within which your
research should be focused at this given point of time. Given, the extremely political and

volatile nature of this committee, your presence of mind and politico

analytical aptitude is something which we at the executive board would be looking to test.

Kindly do not limit your research to the areas highlighted but ensure that you logically

deduce and push your research to areas associated with the issues mentioned.

Also, unlike most conventional/unconventional committees you have attended, this

committee shall have “substantive” intervention by the Executive Board.

The objective of this background guide is to provide you with a ‘background’ of the issue

at hand and therefore it might seem to some as not being comprehensive enough. If you

feel that the Guide does not cover all the issues and it could have been compiled in a

better way by giving more information or links or better arguments ‘for’ and ‘against’, we

think that would be the appropriate time to pat our backs for we successfully managed to

compile a ‘Background Guide’ and not a ‘Study Guide’ which most of the Executive

Board members fail to differentiate. We feel that ‘study guides’ are detrimental to the

individual growth of the delegate since they overlook a very important part of this

activity, which is- Research. We are sure that this background guide will give you a

perfect launching pad to start with your research.

The usage of internet in the committee is prohibited, barring the devices the Executive

Board, the Secretariat and the Conference Staff are carrying.

Wishing you all good luck and hoping to see you all at this conference discussing

imperative issues of national concern.

Warm Regards

SammanVardhanGautam Mitansh Sheth sammangautam12@gmail.com

mitanshsheth687@gmail.com
Following is a suggested pattern for researching (if required):

➢Research on the allotted personality, understanding his/her thinking about the

agenda.

➢Comprehending the Party Policy of the allotted Personality. It includes understanding

the ideology and principles adopted by the party on the agenda. It further includes

studying past actions taken by the party on the agenda and other related issues –

specifically analyzing their causes and consequences.

➢Researching further upon the agenda using the footnotes and links given in the guide

and from other sources such as academic papers, institutional reports, national reports,

news articles, blogs etc.

➢Understanding policies adopted by different political parties and major parties involved

in the agenda. Including their position, ideology and adopted past actions.

➢Characterizing the agenda into sub-topics and preparing speeches and statements on

them. It is the same as preparing topics for the moderated caucuses and their content.

➢Preparing a list of possible solutions and actions that can be adopted on the issue as per

your party’s policies.

➢Assemble proof/evidence for any important piece of information/allegation you are

going to use in committee

➢Keeping your research updated using various news sources, especially news websites

given in the proof/evidence section.

➢Lastly, we would request all the delegates to put sincere efforts in preparation and

research for the simulation and work hard to make it a fruitful learning experience for all.

A lot of members have doubts such as what they are supposed to write or how should they
structure their speech. This is completely up to the member. The maximum we can do is

to tell you according to our experiences about how speeches are structured and content

chosen for them accordingly. These are:

• Premise – Analysis – Example

• Problem – Solution – Benefits

• Past – Present – Future Scenario

• What – So what – Now what

There can be more structures. These are some of them which the members of the

Executive Board have seen.

Note: The best way to debate in any format is to clearly state your opinion and

justify it with substantive rational sources

PROOF/EVIDENCE IN COMMITTEE

1. Government Reports (Each ministry publishes its own reports including

External Affairs Ministry)

2. Government Websites

3. Government run News channels i.e. RSTV, LSTV, DD News

4. Standing Committee Reports/ Commission Reports

5. RTI Proofs

6. Parliamentary Standing Committee reports

7. Questions and Answers of the parliament

NOTE: Under no circumstances will sources like Wikipedia

(http://www.wikipedia.org/), Amnesty

International (http://www.amnesty.org/) or newspapers like Times of India

(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/), etc. be accepted as PROOF/EVIDENCE. But

they can be used for better understanding of any issue or even be brought up in

debate if the information given in such sources is in line with the beliefs of the

Government.
Agenda: Amending the term secular in the constitution

How exactly do you even begin to discuss a topic as academically

stimulating as these? It inevitably is a daunting task for delegates,
veterans and first-timers alike. It is of particular importance that
delegates learn the boundaries of the agenda they are researching and
deliberating upon and keep the debate within its ambit.
 Secular: not connected with religious or spiritual matters.

The Preamble of the Indian Constitution declares India to be a

sovereign, socialist, secular and democratic republic. It guarantees the
fundamental right to practice, profess and propagate a person’s
religion and faith under the fundamental Right to Religion under
Article 25-28 of the Constitution.

The Constitution implies under Article 25-28 that the State will not
patronize, discriminate or meddle in the profession of any religion. It
also protects individual religions and groups under
the aforementioned provisions of the Constitution. The agenda
specifically mentions the word, “Amend”. It is very important to know
what exactly is implied by this word.

Amend : minor changes to (a text, piemake ce of legislation, etc.) in order to make it fairer or more
accurate, or to reflect changing circumstances.

Little known to the general public, the terms “secular” and

“socialist” were not always present in the Indian Constitution. They
were added later on in 1976 by the 42nd Constitution Amendment
passed by the Parliament.

The classical argument against the inclusion of the term “secular” in

our Constitution is one which says that the reason these terms weren’t
included before 1976 is because the
original makers of the Constitution deliberately chose to keep these
concepts out of the preamble.

A petition filed in 2020 in the Supreme Court plead the deletion of the
terms of “secular” and “socialist” from the preamble of the Constitution.
The argument put forth in the petition goes along the lines of, Advocate
Vishnu Shankar Jain, who filed the petition, told HT, “In a democratic setup, the citizens
cannot be bound to accept a particular ideology and the application of the ideology depends
on the will of the people to be reflected through votes from time to time. In this case, the
petitioners have said that ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ concepts are political thoughts and seen in
the light of right to practice religion (Article 25), right to free speech (Article 19(1)(a)), and
these principles are against the principle of democracy.”

The link for the original article;

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/delete-secular
socialist-words-from-the-constitution-plea-in-supreme court/story-
5JXAm1ml4eYKlYjCZRFJNM.html
The term “secular” has previously been tried to be inculcated in the
Constitution thrice before 1976. Three times in 1948 it was suggested
and struck down.
Delegates researching on the agenda for the conference are
recommended to read about the same and draw analysis on the
circumstances pertaining to and around the history of the term
“secular” in Indian Constitution and Polity.

Questions to consider:
1. What relevance does the principal of secularism hold with respect
to India and its polity?
2. How has the inclusion of secularism shaped India’s
history?
3. Is there actually a need to amend the term in our
Constitution?
4. If it is amended, what effects will it have on the Country? 5.
What does the future hold for India if it is amended?
Agenda: Discussing the Use of Spyware with Special
Emphasis on Pegasus

In this increasingly digitized era, protecting your privacy has become of

paramount importance. A lot of us know how important it is to do so
but not many of us know our way around the legal minefield
surrounding it nor the ability to navigate the maze of information
related to the core matter.

When we talk about this agenda, it is very important that we first

understand the concept of spyware. Proper understanding of this
concept is very important because in all honesty, it is ambiguous.

Spyware is any software that installs itself on your computer and starts covertly
monitoring your online behavior without your knowledge or permission. Spyware
is a kind of malware that secretly gathers information about a person or organization
and relays this data to other parties.

To discuss the agenda productively, one has to be well versed with

Indian Laws over privacy and surveillance. Without knowing the
dimensions of the ambit this operates within, it becomes an
increasingly difficult task. Test the waters before you step into the
river.

The agenda specifically cites “Pegasus”. For those who may not
know what this is, or why it is worthy of discussion, I am inserting a
link which the delegates are highly implored to go through.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/trendspotting/what is-
pegasus-spyware-and-how-it
works/articleshow/84607533.cms?from=mdr

To better be informed about communication surveillance laws in

India, two acts are of primary importance. The Telegraph
Act,1885 and Information Technology Act,2000. Delegates are urged
to go through these two acts in order to facilitate fruitful debate in the
committee.

The Laws for surveillance in India and the concerns over

privacy.

Questions to consider:
1. How serious is a breach of privacy, and what steps can
be taken to secure privacy laws?
2. Are current privacy laws adequate to sufficiently
safeguard one’s privacy?
3. What steps can be taken to combat spyware programs
such as Pegasus?